Recent Lakers rumors have been about what Rajon Rondo’s role with the team will be this season.
With the season underway for the Los Angeles Lakers, recent Lakers rumors have been about the role of one of their veterans.
In the loss to the Los Angeles Clippers to open the season, the Lakers were without Rajon Rondo and Kyle Kuzma. The absence of these two players certainly had an impact on the team, as the Clippers’ bench did a great job outplaying the Lakers bench unit.
In the first game, the Lakers used Avery Bradley as the starting point guard with LeBron James handling most of the point guard duties. While Bradley is a good player, he is not a traditional point guard who can set up teammates. He is more of a spot-up shooter, who can space the floor well for LeBron.
While Rondo does have some issues on the defensive end of the court, he can certainly run the offense well for the Lakers. Using James heavily at the point guard spot might not be the answer for the Lakers long-term, so Rondo could have big role.
Recently, Dave McMenamin reported that the Lakers might not be starting Rondo a ton this season.
More on Rondo as the starting point guard: LAL always planned for him to start a number of games at PG, sources said. It might be as few as 10 games, though. There will still be plenty of time with LeBron as the primary ball handler, just not him as the exclusive starting PG.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) October 25, 2019
As seen against the Clippers, the Lakers could use a guy like Rondo off the bench to help the offense run a bit better. The Lakers are lacking a scoring threat with Kuzma out, but a player like Rondo can help get players in position to succeed offensively.
Seeing that Vogel might mix Rondo into the starting lineup is certainly interesting to see. Building chemistry in the starting unit is something that coaches generally want. However, starting Rondo here and there over someone would in theory compromise that.
Rondo’s vague role with the team continues to be a mystery. He should be back pretty soon after dealing with some calf discomfort. It will definitely be noteworthy when he is ready to play if he is a starter or reserve for the Lakers.